Without a Trace
by AllAloneAtTheDisco
Summary: Melanie Stone hides from a chilling past - one so bad, that she needed to erase her entire identity, and become an entirely new person. From eye color to gender, she’s completely changed. Full summary inside. DRAKExOFC


Disclaimer: **I own nothing.**

Title: **Without a Trace**

Rating: **T**

Summary: **Melanie Stone hides from a chilling past - one so bad, that she needed to erase her entire identity, and become an entirely new person. From eye color to gender, she's completely changed. And now, all she has to do is lay low and keep things simple. But how can she, when she begins to fall for her roommates brother? And how will he himself react to their undeniable attraction?**

1

_It was the last week of his first year of college, and Josh Nichols was trying to study for his last few exams. __Trying_ because, with the unexpected drop-in by his stepbrother, he was finding himself rather distracted at the moment. As an exceptionally successful musician, Drake Parker had quite a few exciting stories up his sleeves. He hardly took the time to breath, as one story bled into the next.

"So then the frisbee knocks over my microphone stand, I'm standing there like an idiot, security is going crazy…"

"Drake?" Josh interrupted, tapping his pen against his textbook on the counter. "As interesting as your stories are, I really should get back to studying."

Drake frowned slightly, then quickly hid it as he slid off the stool beside Josh. "Fine. But when your done, I want to hear some of _your_ stories, College Boy."

"I don't have any." Josh admitted. "None that would entertain _you_ anyway."

"There has to be something exciting that you did," Drake replied as he crossed the kitchenette, running his fingers over the edge of the small round table as he moved. He stopped in front of the refrigerator and pulled it up. "Want a soda?"

"Mocha Cola."

Drake grabbed two Mocha Colas and turned back, looping around the long counter that separated the kitchen area from the living room. He hopped up onto the stool across from Josh and placed their sodas down.

"Nice dorm room, by the way." Drake grinned, eyeing his surroundings. "I can't believe you've had this whole place to yourself for a year."

It was large, for a dorm, with a kitchenette, living room, two bedrooms, a full bathroom with a hot tub and a small porch. It was brightly decorated from where they sat; the kitchen was full of red furniture while the living room had a royal blue theme, though the plasma screen and video collection made it hard to notice the décor. The bathroom was less extravagant, painted with different pastel colors. And the bedrooms were even duller. Josh's room was of a dull blue and gray. The spare room was dark green and white.

"Almost a year." Josh corrected him without looking up.

"Oh, right." Drake recalled. "You're getting a roommate today. That sucks."

"I don't mind."

"Of course not," Drake rolled his eyes at his brothers selflessness. "Isn't it a little late in the year to be getting a new roommate?"

"The kid transferred," Josh explained. "I think he finished his year at…" he paused, realizing that he didn't actually know much at all on the matter. "…wherever he was going."

"So, why come here now?" Drake asked. "Why not wait until after the summer."

"Some people like to stay in their dorm rooms over the summer," Josh responded, finally looking up. He closed his textbook and flicked his pen onto the counter, knowing that he wouldn't be able to study as long as Drake was there. "I'm staying."

Drake blinked, "You are?"

"Yes, I like it here." Josh explained. "Besides, airfare isn't cheap. And I have classes and books to pay for."

"I would pay for you." Drake offered, carefully keeping a steady tone. He didn't want his longing for Drake-and-Josh-time to be blatantly obvious. "Come back to San Diego. Mom, Megan and Walter must miss you a bunch. Besides, Boston is cold."

"It's summertime, Drake." Josh pointed out. "And I already told them I'm staying. They said it's fine."

"Then I'm staying with you," Drake said softly. "For a little while. Just so that we can catch up."

"That's fine with me." Josh smiled sincerely. He reached for his can just as Drake reached for his own. They cracked them both open and held them in the air. "Here's to a great summer, brotha."

"Just me and you." Drake added, clacking his can against Josh's. He raised it toward his mouth, but froze halfway when their was a knocking sound on the door. He sighed quietly and put his can back down as Josh got up. "Or not…"

Josh ignored Drake's last words and pulled the door open with a smile on his face.

"Are you my new roomie?" he asked, looking down at the slighter boy in front of him.

He was very short, shorter than Drake, and his face was smooth and angular - feminine even. Choppy black hair was drooping from beneath the black baseball cap on his head, and he wore a baggy black hooded sweatshirt and skinny jeans. Though the boy was so skinny that the jeans were slightly baggy on him.

The boy looked up at Josh with big green eyes, his thin lips curving into a nervous smile. "I think so."

Josh blinked, surprised by the sound of his voice. It wasn't deep at all. The boy just didn't seem old enough to be a freshman in college. But then, puberty treated some people worse than others. He should know.

"Well, come on in." Josh told him, stepping out of the way. Once the boy was inside with his luggage, Josh closed the door. He glanced over at Drake, who was staring at his soda can absentmindedly. "Hey Drake, wanna help me bring his suitcases into his bedroom?"

"Nope."

Josh frowned and then shot the boy an apologetic look.

"It's okay, I got it." he smiled politely. "Which room is mine?"

"There are two doors down that little hallway." Josh pointed to it, though it couldn't be missed. "It's the second door."

"Thank you."

The boy walked away, dragging his luggage behind him, and disappeared into the second bedroom. He closed the door quietly behind him, and then turned around to take in his new bedroom. Green wasn't his favorite color, but all-in-all, the room was quite nice.

He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and dropped to the floor. After flipping it open, he pulled out a small identification card. A driver's license. The last shred of evidence that he was actually a she. The he was actually an eighteen year old girl named Melanie Stone.

The photo on the I.D. didn't even look like her anymore. Her long blonde locks had been chopped so short that they didn't even reach her chin. Her hair and eye brows had been dyed black. Her blue eyes were hidden beneath green contacts. The change was drastic, but very necessary.

Melanie shoved the I.D. behind her new one. The one that said she was a male. The one that held her new identity. She slapped the wallet closed and leaned up so that she could put it back in her pocket. Then she sat back down, twisting her torso around so that she could further study her new surroundings. A full length mirror to her left caught her attention, and she almost looked away from it.

Melanie sat cross legged on the floor, staring with an empty expression as she eyed the stranger in the mirror. A knot twisted through her stomach, and for a brief moment, everything that had brought her to these extremes went through her mind. But she quickly pushed the memories away. Tilting her head to the side, she frowned, avoiding any eye contact with the stranger that was her reflection. Eventually she stood up again, pulled off her sweatshirt, tossed it onto her new bed, and headed for the door. She adjusted the fabric beneath her shirt, the one with the elastic support to flatten her chest (not that she had much to begin with), and walked through the door.

"Why are you being rude?"

Melanie stopped before she reached the end of the hall, her heart thudding a little faster at the sound of her roommates tone. She peered around the corner to see what was going on.

"Drake!" Josh snapped.

Drake looked up from his soda can, that signature look of innocence plastered on his face. "I'm not being rude."

"Don't you forget that while you're here, you're a guest in _my_ place, and I have every right to-"

"Did you notice they changed the design on the Mocha Cola can?" Drake interrupted, his eyes mesmerized by the can again.

Josh groaned and crossed the room, ready to grab the can of soda and chuck it into the garbage. But a soft voice from behind him stopped him from doing so.

"My name is Matthew by the way." Melanie spoke casually, acting as though she hadn't heard a peep. She tried to make her voice deeper, but she could only do it a little, or else it sounded terribly fake. She had practiced enough to know.

Josh turned around, wearing a smile again. "I'm Josh. And this is my brother Drake."

"Step brother." Drake corrected.

"He's just visiting."

Melanie smiled shyly and then walked over to the counter, "Nice to meet you guys."

"Nice to meet you too, Matthew." Josh grinned. "Want a soda or some lime-aid?"

"No thank you, I'm fine for now."

Drake shot her a charming smile, "So Matty-"

"Just Matthew will do." Melanie told him, slightly taken aback by his now serious expression as his eyes burned into hers.

"Matthew, then…" Drake scoffed. "Care to tell us a little about yourself?"

"Um," Melanie bit her lip. "My name is Matthew Benson. I'm from New York City. I'm eighteen years old. And, uh, I'm majoring in Psychology."

Drake frowned, "How uninteresting."

_He's pleasant. _Melanie pressed her lips into a hard line.

"_Drake_."

He looked over at Josh, "What?"

"Cut it out, I'm serious."

Drake rolled his eyes, "Whatever. I'm going to go watch some TV."

"And _I'm_ going to finish studying," Josh decided, picking up his books. He turned and looked at Melanie. "If he bothers you, just throw him out."

Melanie glanced at Drake just in time to catch him glaring at her before he hopped over the couch to sit down. She quickly looked back at Josh and smiled weakly, "It'll be fine."

"Alright." Josh gave her a small reassuring smile and then headed for his bedroom.

Sighing quietly, Melanie gazed back toward Drake. She quickly contemplated her options before deciding to join him in the living room. Very slowly, she made her way to the couch, and then carefully sat down on the opposite end.

Drake shot her a look of annoyance before placing the remote down on the coffee table. "What are you doing?"

A nervousness she couldn't comprehend rolled over her. "Can't I watch television with you?"

Drake pursed his lips, "Sure, I guess."

"So…"

"So…" Drake forced something that hardly qualified as a smile. "Psychology, huh? What's that, like, the study of crystal balls and seeing into the future?"

Melanie chuckled, but she quickly realized that he wasn't joking. She coughed and cleared her throat, "No. It is the scientific study of mental processes and behavior."

"Oh." Drake said after a minute. "Think you can figure me out?"

"Doubt it." Melanie responded. "I haven't yet taken the course on Abnormal and Clinical Psychology. Sorry."

He opened his mouth in mock horror, "That was hurtful."

"I'm sure you'll survive."

"Yeah, well, I don't even go to school and I'm pretty sure I can figure _you_ out." He decided.

_I hope to God that's not true. _"Highly, highly doubtful, Drake." Melanie replied, shaking her head. "I'm hard to read."

His eyebrows rose, "Is that a dare, or a double dare?"

Melanie shrugged once.

"Matty, look." He started, sliding to the middle cushion while he gazed into her green eyes. "There are two types of people in the world. You have your responsible, fun-lacking, Josh types. And then you have your completely awesome, excitement-driven, Drake types."

"And you are going to lump me into one of these so called categories…"

"You, Matt, _think_ that you are a Josh." Drake explained, pausing. "However… I can tell that you are actually the opposite."

Her eyes narrowed, "First of all, there are billions of types of people, Drake. Not just two. And for your information, I happen to like Josh. He seems like a very nice person. Unlike yourself, who has given me the death stare since the moment I walked in. I don't exactly know what your problem is, or what you think gives you the right-"

"I'm gonna stop you right there." Drake interrupted, holding a hand in the air. He ignored the glare he received on her end. "Do you know if this couch pulls out?"

Melanie stared at him in disbelief, "You seriously interrupted me, to ask me that?"

"Josh did have a spare room until _you_ barged in here and took over."

"Speaking of my room," Melanie huffed, hopping to her feet. "I think I'll go there."

"Goodnight." Drake smirked as he watched her walked off in exasperation. "Sleep well, Matty."

_The only way that will happen is if you die in your sleep. Hardly a chance of that though, since only the good die young._ Melanie shook her head angrily as she stormed into the hallway. She paused at Josh's door and knocked lightly.

"Come in."

She opened the door halfway and leaned sideways on the threshold, "Just stopping to say goodnight."

"Going to bed already?" Josh asked.

"I'm going to unpack, settle in, and then I'll probably be exhausted." she explained, smiling. "It's been a long day."

Josh almost believed her, but then he frowned. "Was Drake bothering you?"

"No." she answered, much too quickly.

"I'll have a talk with him." Josh promised. "Night, Matthew."

"Sweet dreams." Melanie replied, and she stepped out and shut his door again.

Standing in the middle of the hallway, she found herself trapped in unexplainable hesitation. She stared in the direction of the living room, watching the lights from the TV bounce off the walls. _Drake_. Just his name send an electric current through her veins. _This is bad. This is bad bad bad._ She mentally kicked herself, hoping to knock some sense into herself. But her heart only raced harder every time she thought about him. _Stop-thinking-about-him._ Angrily, she whirled around and stormed into her bedroom. She closed the door and locked it, then began to unpack. She needed to keep herself busy. To find a solution before she'd even admit to the problem. She needed to stop thinking about Drake.

_Fail._


End file.
